Gorge of Samaria, walk the longest gorge in Europe during your Chania villa holiday, it’s a just a short drive to the south of Chania and is absolutely spectacular.

The Gorge of Samaria is a National Park, formed in 1962 with a view to protecting the Kri-Kri, a rare Cretan goat and is recognized as the second most important attraction for visitors to the Greek island of Crete.

The gorge has been forged over the years by the river which runs north to south through the White Mountains (Lefka Ori) of Crete. The northern entrance is situated at 1,250 metres altitude and continues for 16km down to the Libyan sea. In total the walk is 16km with a 3km walk in followed by a further 13km within the Gorge of Samaria National Park.

The walk through the Samaria Gorge has many wonderful sights though the most amazing is the section called the Iron Gates where you look up the 500 metre high walls at a gap in the canyon ceiling of only 4 metres as the walls of the gorge almost touch.

The walk is considered a must for any holiday visitor to Crete though it is particularly to do from a holiday villa in Chania. This ramble can take between 4 and 7 hours and culminates in a boat trip from Agia Roumeli at the end combined with a coach trip which returns you to Chania.

Check with the tourist office in Chania to organize your walk through the Gorge of Samaria once installed in your luxury Chania villa.